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SUCCESS! The Landing of Curiosity Mars Rover

PASADENA, Calif –NASA’s high-stakes mission to Mars has succeeded in its attempt to land on the red planet.

Hurled toward Mars on November 26, 2011, the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission has toted a car-sized rover named Curiosity to the surface of Mars.

The scene here at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is jubilant, with the first images from the landed rover already screened.

The mobile laboratory appeared to make a pinpoint landing at Gale Crater. It will put to use 10 science investigations and a robotic arm that can drill into rocks, scoop up soil and digest samples into internal analytical instruments.

The rover’s goal is to investigate the area’s past and present environments.

Curiosity’s wheels-down meeting with Mars took place on August 5, Pacific Daylight Time (Aug. 6, Universal Time and Eastern Daylight Time) to begin a two-year prime mission of scrutinizing the red planet.